Explorations
by StudentofDust
Summary: A new series of oneshots. Each will concentrate on one pairing, none will be the same length. Major and minor characters will be included. Rated just to be safe, but I don't plan for there to be any stories that merit an M rating. DEAD STORY.


**Yeah, I know, you all are wanting me to update one of my older stories, probably, instead of making new ones like this one. But, I thought I might as well start on a new series of Negima! oneshots, and leave **_**Passions**_** to the wind. I may update **_**Passions**_** sometime soon, but for now, this is going to be the one I do the most updating on.**

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**Title: **_Falling Apart_

**Pairing: **_NegiAnya_

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Lightning flashed outside, and Negi awoke with a start. The accompanying thunder rolled outside, echoing seemingly everywhere throughout the room. As the bright light faded, and Negi found that he could see again, he glanced around the room nervously, trying to see if there was anyone in the room with him.

Of course, there wasn't.

Sighing, half in relief, half in exasperation, Negi lay his head back down onto his pillow, staring up at the ceiling inattentively. He began counting the stucco splatters on the ceiling; _there aren't any sheep around here,_ he thought, _so I gotta do _something…

He had just gotten to eighteen when he heard a knock on the door; it was soft, quiet, but he heard it all the same. He thought for a moment that it would wake Asuna and Konoka up, but then remembered that they were both out spending the night at different classmates' rooms- Konoka was staying with Yue and Nodoka for the night, while Asuna was bunking with Setsuna and her roommate.

"Who- who is it?" Negi asked aloud. No response came from the other side, so he asked again: "Who's out there?"

Again, nothing came, so Negi quietly crept down the ladder that led from his loft to the floor below. He stopped at the bottom, listening, both to hear if he'd awakened Chamo, and to hear if the mysterious stranger was still outside. He heard nothing from both places, so he continued on towards the door.

When he was about halfway there, he heard another knock on the door; it was a bit louder than before, and Negi jumped in surprise. His heart started to race again, and he began to take deep breaths to calm his jumpy nerves back down again.

It took him a moment to get to the door, and when he did, he put his ear up to the doorframe and listened. "Who's out there?" he repeated.

"It's me," came a voice that Negi couldn't recognize.

"Who?"

"Just let me in, and I'll show you!" the voice responded, a bit annoyed.

Just then, Negi realized that the door had a peephole, and that he could just look through it to find out who was outside. He chuckled to himself, as he strained to look through the hole. All he saw was a short figure standing outside, one with bright orange-red hair-

"Anya?" he whispered to himself. He opened the door a crack, and took a look out.

Sure enough, Anya was standing outside his door, looking very… wet. Negi opened the door fully, and looked at her.

"Anya-chan, what on earth are you _doing_ here?"

Anya shivered, and droplets of water rolled off her rain slicker. "Trying to get in touch with you, that's what. Onee-chan wanted me to come over here and find out how you were."

Negi stepped aside, allowing Anya to come in. "Why couldn't she just have sent a letter or something?" When Anya was inside, Negi shut the door and picked up a blanket that was laying on Asuna's chair, draping it around Anya.

She could feel the warmth of his skin through the blanket, and despite the cold rain that was still soaking her clothes, she felt better. What she didn't notice, though, was that a light blush had come over her face, when Negi had laid her arm around her. _That really feels good… I can't remember the last time I felt so good around Negi-kun… I mean sure, I-_

"Can I get you some tea?"

Anya snapped out of her thoughts, and her gaze swept upwards from the floor to meet Negi's eyes fully. "That'd be nice," she responded. "What kinds do you have?"

"Any you can think of." Negi climbed the ladder and, reaching his desk, opened a drawer and began rummaging through it. "I've got black, green, Earl Grey…"

"Just black'll be fine." Negi smiled over at her and grabbed the teapot, climbing down the ladder to fill it with water.

If she hadn't noticed her blush before Negi had smiled at her, the way it intensified afterwards definitely caused her to take notice. _Oh no, why in the world am I blushing like this?_ She put her hands up to her face, trying to hide its redness. _What's he going to think?_ Closing her eyes, she sank down into the chair by Asuna's desk. She didn't even hear Negi come in, and didn't realize he was there until he asked, "Are you alright, Anya-chan?"

Anya looked up at Negi, hoping against hope he wouldn't notice her face's redness. "Me? I'm fine."

Negi looked a bit puzzled. "Your face is all red, though. Are you sure you're not sick? How long were you out in the rain?"

"Only for a few minutes, before I came to the building."

Setting the water to boiling, Negi climbed down the ladder again. "Alright, so… what do you want to do, now that you're here?"

An odd desire came over her, just then. "Ever tried to make a house of cards?"

"A house? Of cards?"

Anya smiled. "Here, I'll show you how to make one." She looked around the room and, finding a pack of cards laying on Konoka's nightstand, took the cards out and laid them down on the table.

"Here, you start like this…"

She began setting the cards up, putting them straight upright, so that they would stay up and not fall down. Once she'd gotten the first layer of the house done, she set up the "floor" of the next, then-

"Oh, no!" she cried, as the whole thing came tumbling down in front of her. "I used to be able to do it, I really could!" She looked up at Negi, a tear forming in her eye. "But now, they just keep falling apart on me!"

Negi started to really feel sorry for her. "Here, I'll help you pick them up."

The two started to gather the cards into the pack again; they got down to the last card, and both Negi and Anya reached for it at the same time. Anya's hand found the card, and Negi's hand came down on top of Anya's. Anya looked up in sharp surprise, to find Negi staring at her oddly, his face flushing slightly.

Anya quickly jerked her hand away. _Why on earth did he let it lay there like that? And I must be red as a beet right now… Though… his hands were really smooth and soft… I really liked it._

Negi gathered his thoughts: "So… were you wanting to spend the night over here?"

"I may have to," replied Anya, whose face was still bright red, "if the storm doesn't let up."

"Doesn't looks like it's going to," said Negi, as he looked intently out the window, "at least not until later tonight. Why don't you just stay here tonight?"

Anya looked at Negi, a look of longing in her eyes. _Oh, screw it. I told myself I wasn't going to do this, but..._ She walked over to the ladder, and climbed up it. Chamo stirred on Negi's bed, and Anya walked a little quieter, so as not to disturb their ermine friend. Once she'd gotten to where she was right behind Negi, she wrapped her arms around him from behind, clasping them over his chest.

"I really missed you, Negi."

She couldn't see it from her vantage point, but Negi had flushed completely when she'd done that, and at her words, a tear had fallen from his eye, down to the windowsill. He reached his hands up, and took both of Anya's hands into his own.

"I missed you too."

Anya, quite surprised, lay her head down on Negi's shoulder, burying her face into the soft terry cloth of his bathrobe. "Things are really hard back home, not having you around."

"I know the feeling," came Negi's soft reply. "I mean, I have all my students here with me, but… sometimes, I wish I could have my old friends here with me. Like you."

"Yeah, I wish I could be here, too. But, I have my fortune-telling duties to take care of, and you… well, you're a full-fledged teacher now, I hear."

"Yeah," said Negi, a smile coming over his face. "It's a great thing."

"It really is…" Anya removed her arms from around his chest, and wrapped them now around his stomach, Negi's hands once again moving down to meet hers. There, they sat, neither of them saying a word, until both had fallen fast asleep…

The next morning, Negi and Anya awoke around the same time; they'd slept in the same position the whole night.

"Morning," said Negi, still a bit sleepy.

"Same to you," replied Anya. She looked over at the clock. "I really do need to get going now. Sorry for running out on you like this, but-"

"No, I understand."

Anya smiled. "I kind of thought you would…" She dressed quickly, and was about to head out the door, when she felt a slight tug on her hand. Looking down, she saw Negi's hand had taken her own in it.

"Don't I get to say goodbye?"

Anya turned around to say something, but was met by the sight of Negi pressing his lips upon hers. Acting on instinct, she opened her mouth, and let their tongues dance over each other, pure ecstasy flowing through their blood as one.

After a moment, they parted, both of them red as a beet.

"Goodbye," Negi said softly. "Come back soon, please."

"I will," said Anya, not much louder. She turned and walked away, one thought on her mind: _Now, if _that_ wasn't the best good-bye ever, I don't know what is…_


End file.
